The Absence of Light
by missdee1986
Summary: The patriots lost, yet Charlie, Monroe and the gang have to prepare for an even bigger battle. Charlie is pretty sure about what she wants for her future and who she wants it with, but the nano have other ideas. Ripped from her family and thrown into a different world, her future looks set. But Monroe isn't about to give her up without a fight. A/U Charloe
1. Chapter 1

**A/N - This fic is an idea that had been running around my mind for ages, so I finally gave in to the muse and made a start. Charlie and Monroe might be a little OOC because this one is totally A/U - literally lol. **

The war had ended within six weeks. With the might of two territories behind them, their little band of rebels had destroyed the patriots with very little trouble. But the price had been high. No amount of patriot deaths could give Jason back his life. And the sudden savior status that had been bestowed upon Miles and in particular, Monroe, couldn't return a son to his father.

Charlie sat alone on the steps outside outside the massive house they'd been staying in. awaiting the sunrise. Despite all the celebrating she couldn't bring herself to join in with the happy mood that had descended on everyone around her. She knew the others felt the same. Ever since Priscilla had shared the nano's new destination and plan they had been waiting for the new war to start. It was exhausting and Charlie was seriously considering early retirement and taking off for the nearest cave to ride out the storm she just knew was rapidly approaching.

She looked up at the sound of approaching footsteps, hand automatically reaching for the gun at her side.

"Relax. Charlotte. Didn't anyone tell you the war is over?" He was drunk, unsurprisingly. Monroe was rarely anything else these days. Not that she blamed him. She still couldn't quite believe that Connor had actually stood aside and allowed Neville to try to kill his own father. She'd been pissed at Monroe often enough herself so that she could understand, but to stand aside and let someone kill him... Next time she saw Connor she might just have to shoot him herself.

Monroe had settled himself on the opposite side of her step before she replied. "According to my mom the war is just beginning."

He snorted, "Let me tell you a little secret, Charlotte..." He leaned over to her, "Your mom just likes being dramatic. It's a crazy-people thing."

She couldn't bring herself to get angry, he sorta had a point anyway. "Well... you would know." She told him. His smirk dropped for a split second before he burst out laughing.

"Yeah I guess I would."

The grin on his face pulled her in, she reluctantly smiled back at him and saw his own widen in response. For some reason he had begun to get a real kick out of making her smile. If he could manage to make her laugh he walked around for hours afterwards looking pleased with himself. But she'd only let him get away with that twice so far. Once, when he'd done such an impressive impersonation of Miles during a story that involved her uncle accidentally setting himself on fire while trying to seduce a girl that she hadn't even realized she'd been giggling like crazy until he'd stopped to stare at her, and again when he'd convinced an incredibly camp Texan soldier that Miles was secretly into men but enjoyed being submissive and needed the guy to come at him. She had almost howled with laughter at the look on Miles' face as a grown man in full uniform and a pair of scary looking heels had pushed him into a seat and begun gyrating in his lap. The whole thing had only gotten funnier when Rachel showed up and yanked the soldier off Miles with a glower on her face that Charlie had never seen before.

The rest of the time, Monroe walked around looking like a kicked puppy, so she couldn't bring herself to put a stop to the weird connection that had sprung up between them. They'd always had it, just not in the comfortable, easy way that seemed to come naturally to them now. Maybe it was the fact that Connor wasn't around anymore. Or maybe it was because somewhere along the way Charlie had realized that he _had _changed. She trusted him completely now, no doubts or questions. And she had actively chosen to fight side by side with him instead of Miles during the final battles with the patriots. They watched each others backs, had even saved each other a few times as well. She supposed that was just their thing. And now, sitting in the quiet with him felt natural in a way it never had with anyone else.

For a while they just relaxed, enjoying the peace.

When she finally spoke, it was only because she thought he'd drifted into a drunken sleep. "Sometimes I think about what it would be like to just take off. Run away to some place quiet and forget all of this."

Monroe shifted, drawing her attention. "Can I come?"

She gave a small chuckle, "Yeah why not, I need _someone _to carry my crap for me."

"Please, you'd miss me if you went off without me." He teased.

"Probably." Charlie grinned at him, "I'd have to carry my own crap _and _I wouldn't have anyone to use as target practice."

"You could use it."

"Hey!" As she leaned over and smacked his arm he started laughing again. Grabbing her arm to stop her, he'd inadvertently pulled her against him and the laughter stopped as their eyes met. Suddenly the world seemed to have shrank. His fingers tightened their grip on her arm as they looked at each other. She watched him sober up right in front of her. Charlie could feel her heart speed up. This wasn't a good idea and she really needed to move. But she didn't. As he unconsciously licked his bottom lip all thoughts disappeared from her mind. Monroe pulled her close and dipped his head down, just as their lips began to press together they heard a shout from inside the house and sprang apart.

"Will you two keep the damn giggling to a minimum?! Some of us are trying to sleep, you know like normal people do!" Miles' voice was the equivalent of a bucket of ice water.

"Then go to damn sleep and quit bitchin' at us old man!" Monroe yelled back like nothing had happened. Charlie was grateful, it gave her a second to get her breath back.

When he finally turned back to her he looked calm, but his eyes were hungry and she knew hers were too. They'd become quite popular ever since it had become public knowledge that they were responsible for the patriots being stopped, which meant they had endured weeks of watching each other with flirtatious hangers-on drooling all over them. It was torture. For her anyway. But she suspected it was the same for him. More than once some guy had gone from hanging all over her to pretending she didn't exist and flashing scared looks in Monroe's direction every time they saw him. She'd be mad about it if the idea of him being jealous hadn't thrilled her so much.

She wondered if he'd make a move towards her but he didn't. Instead he let out a sigh and leaned back against the step. "So where will we go?" He asked her. The tone of his voice had gone from joking to serious.

"Somewhere quiet, where no one knows us. By the sea."

"You like the sea?"

"I've never seen it." She told him. "Until all of this started I hadn't ever left the Monroe Republic." She winced inwardly at mentioning it, but he didn't react. Instead he shot her a small smile.

"Then we'll go to the sea." He said it like that was the matter settled and she may as well go start packing. Charlie smiled at him.

"Really? Will you teach me how to surf?" Monroe chuckled, shaking his head at her.

"I'll teach you how to surf when you teach me how to use that crossbow of yours." Her answering pout made him laugh again. He had been asking her for weeks to show him how to use the damn thing and she had refused point blank every time. Not that she would ever admit it to anyone, but hunting was the one thing she could do better than him and she wasn't about to give him a chance to beat her at the only thing she thought she was good at.

The sun was coming up properly now and they turned to watch as the sky filled with light. They spread themselves out, leaning on their hands, fingers almost touching.

When finally it was light, Charlie turned to look at him. "Promise we will? One day I mean. Promise we'll live somewhere quiet, by the sea with no more fighting and no more losing." His expression became soft as he looked at her.

"I promise." Her smile was more blinding than the sunlight. Monroe could feel parts of his body warming up that had nothing to do with the weather, or how sexy the woman beside him was. Leaning up, he pressed a kiss to her forehead and relaxed as her head came to rest on his shoulder. Both of them were aware that things between them had shifted again. Neither spoke again, they just rested in the sun with visions of the future playing in their minds.

Hidden in the bushes across from them, Connor sat furious. He didn't need to hear what his dad and the woman he had been sleeping with were saying, their body language was doing all the talking. Not only had his dad abandoned him, but he'd taken up with the girl he had already claimed as his own. For the hundredth time since being locked in a shed with that weirdo Neville, he wished he had shot his father himself that day. The nano had taken over Tom, told Connor that all the power he required would be his if he brought them the Matheson girl. He hadn't actually been sure he could do it until he witnessed the little display in front of him. Charlie was as bad as his dad, she didn't deserve any loyalty.

He watched as Monroe got up and pulled Charlie to her feet. 'I should shoot him now and grab her.' he thought. But he knew Charlie would have shot him before he got near her if he tried that.

To his astonishment, she didn't go inside with his dad. They said a few words he couldn't hear and then with a smile, she turned back towards Connor and his dad headed indoors. Now was his chance. Hiding his gun in his jacket, he wriggled out. As he walked over he saw the moment she heard him. Her eyes shot up and her hand went for her gun. When she saw it was Connor her hand twitched. It didn't take a genius to figure out that she was considering drawing on him anyway. Eventually her hand dropped and she glared at him.

"What the hell are you doing here? Did Neville dump you?" Connor smirked, he couldn't help himself, the girl was downright adorable sometimes. Pity he'd have to end her. There had been a time when he'd imagined running the new Republic _with _Charlie, despite what his father had said to him. He would need a strong woman to bear his children and keep him company, and when he needed a woman to live on her knees for him - well that's what whores were for.

"I just wanna talk Charlie, please."

She glared at him, obviously torn. After a long pause, she nodded, "Okay, talk." The moment she turned to walk towards the house, no doubt thinking he wanted to talk to everyone, he moved. Whipping out his gun, he quickly bashed her round the head and caught her in his arms as she fell.

'The nano had better make this shit worth it.'


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N - wow... thank you guys so much for the support this story has gotten. I'm glad you're liking it so far. Updates won't always be this fast but right now I have the whole story plotted out and I'm itching to get to the part that made me want to write it in the first place :) hope you guys like this chapter, let me know what you think. **

Charlie opened her eyes and found herself in an empty room. There was a small table with a lamp on facing her. She was lying on a bed with her hands tied together. '_Well great._' She should have known better than to turn her back on that asshole Connor.

She struggled to sit up as the door opened and Tom Neville walked in, closely followed by that treacherous little snake that Monroe had the misfortune of being related to. '_Well this just went from bad to awful._'

"Hello Charlotte." Neville said with a smile.

Ignoring the fact that Neville smiling was the strangest thing she had ever seen, she snapped, "Don't call me that!"

"Why not?" Was the reply. " Bass Monroe calls you Charlotte does he not?" That earned him a glare. "Okay, first of all, Bass Monroe can call me whatever he wants, _you can't. _And second - don't call him that, you've no right to call him that." She had no idea why Tom Neville referring to Monroe by his nickname was the thing that pissed her off most about this situation and she didn't know what she was expecting in response to her outburst, but she was pretty certain it wasn't Tom Neville smiling kindly at her and sitting down beside her.

"Oh dear, I'm afraid we're not getting off to a good start are we? I did so want us to get along." His hands came to rest on top of hers and she blinked in astonishment. "After all, you're like my big sister. And you were ever such a good big sister to Danny."

The 'What The Actual Fuck' look on her face quickly disappeared and became an angry scowl as Connor started laughing. Oh, if she had her gun right now...

"She thinks you're Neville." He said quietly, voice filled with amusement.

Charlie's eyes widened as she looked back and forth between Connor and Neville.

"Charlie -" Connor told her, "this is the Nano."

She scooted back against the wall in shock. He brought her to the Nano?! "Connor what the hell is going on?"

He smirked at her. "I finally joined the winning side." Referencing their after-sex conversation in New Vegas was _not _going to help the smug little bastard stay alive after she got her hands untied.

"So what do you want with me?" She turned to ask the Nano-wearing-Neville-thing. This was just creepy. She'd been around a possessed Priscilla before but actually knowing it wasn't really the person she was looking at inside was downright weird.

"We want you to join us Charlie." It was Connor who answered her. "Think about it. This Nano can do anything. We could go anywhere, have everything we ever wanted."

Charlie snorted. She already knew he was a skinny nobody, but could he really be this stupid? "It's just a dream Connor. They send you into a dreamworld that feels real while they use your body however they want. It's not real."

He came forward to kneel against the bed, the look in his eyes was manic. For the first time she saw the family resemblance. God she wished Monroe would burst in the door and get her away from this.

"Not us, they won't take over our minds. They let us live free if we help them."

"Help them what?" she snapped, "Turn the rest of the world into zombies?"

"Screw the rest of the world! It's never done anything for us! What are you worried about Charlie? Your family? Mine? You think they give a crap about us? Miles is too busy worrying about Rachel to care about you... My dad is too busy worrying about Miles to care about me and your mom is too busy trying to prove she's right about everything to care about anyone!" His words were hitting home hard and he knew it. Charlie willed herself not to react.

"So we just let these machines turn them into robots?" She was just _not _going to let that happen.

Connor sighed, knowing a lost cause when he saw one. He stood up and turned to the Nano, "I told you she wouldn't go for it."

The Nano was ignoring him and watching Charlie. It came towards her on the bed and she tried to back further away. "Don't you see, Charlie? We're doing this for you, for all people like you. All of the innocents in this world who are hurt and damaged by men like your uncle and Connor's father."

"Don't." Charlie bit out angrily. "Don't you talk about them like that. They're good men. They were good men and they're trying to be again. What happened to them wasn't their fault and it made them who they were. The world isn't as simple as you think it is. I've done bad things too." The memory of Jason falling to his knees in front of her, hole in his shirt, red stain rapidly spreading, came to her and she blinked it away.

The Nano tried again, "Don't you want all the bad things to go away? Don't you want your family to be safe?" '_Of course I do. It's all that I want. But not like this.' _ She stared right back at the Nano.

"My family will be safe if you stop trying to take over the world and leave us alone." She said with venom. They'd just beaten back the patriots. And whatever she had to do to make it happen, she _would _end up in that house by the sea. These freaks could go to hell and take Connor with them.

The Nano sighed, finally moving away. Connor watched with glittering eyes. "So what do we do with her now? Let her go?" He knew it wasn't going to happen, but despite himself and his anger at Charlie, he didn't want to kill her. She'd been his only friend when he left Mexico behind. The only one who didn't look at him like he was diseased because he had Monroe blood. It was his dad's fault. His and Miles. If she wasn't so blindly loyal to those two assholes she could have been great.

As if it could read his mind, and it probably could, he thought, the Nano turned to him. "We're not going to kill her. We have another use for her."

"I won't let you get inside my head," she snapped.

The Nano grinned at her. "No, we're not going to take you over. We're going to send you away. So far away that your family and _Bass _will never find you."

Charlie stared at the thing in growing horror. They'd think she left them if she didn't get back. _He _would think that she had gone without him. "They'll find me." She said, sounding more certain than she felt. "They'll come for me wherever you send me."

"Oh I know." The grin stretching Neville's face was terrifying. "They won't stop looking. They'll abandon their plot to destroy me and go searching for you."

Connor felt the world shift beneath him and jumped back as suddenly the floor in front of him disappeared completely. Charlie saw the look of horror on his face and leaned forward to see what had caused it. As she gaped at the hole in the floor, fear took hold of her. She looked up and locked eyes with Connor, seeing the same fear reflected back at her.

The bed dipped as the Nano grabbed her and dragged her off to the edge of the hole. She tried to struggle but with her hands bound tight it was useless. The Nano seemed to notice and suddenly the rope tying her wrists together was gone. Before she could react Nevilles hands were gripping her arms. "Where are you sending me?" She yelled out.

"You'll see. In my research I've discovered that humans enjoy surprises. This is my surprise for you, sister. My gift." With that, the Nano shoved her forward. Her hands scrambled to find something, anything, to hold onto and grabbed at empty air. The last thing her panicked mind remembered before everything went black was the sound of Connor screaming her name.

* * *

Bass woke up to a loud pounding on his door. Tired and hungover, he pulled the covers over his head and tried to ignore it and slip back into the dream he'd been enjoying. There was a girl laughing and the sound of splashing water, but he couldn't remember her face. It wasn't often that he had good dreams, so getting back to it was far more important than answering whatever idiot had decided they needed him.

It wouldn't be anyone important anyway, Charlie had a key. She'd stolen it weeks ago and refused to give it back, seeing as he had just attempted to give himself alcohol poisoning and it had taken her three hours to convince him to open the damn door. Bass figured that her apparent concern was just an excuse, her real motivation, as he had happily explained to a fuming Rachel, was that she was hoping to be able to catch him naked in there some morning when she burst in unannounced. Which she had done several times already, so he had evidence to back his claim.

As he tried to drift off again, the pounding only grew louder though. Cursing softly, he rolled out of bed, pausing to let his head stop spinning for a second then went over to unlock the door.

"I swear Miles, somebody had better be dead. I was trying to sleep." He mumbled as Miles flew past him into the room, his eyes scanning frantically. "What is it?"

Miles whirled back to face him and Bass saw that he looked grey. Fuck. Someone must actually have died. Hopefully it was Rachel. His best friend looked demented so it must have been someone close - he froze. '_No. Christ no.. Just, NO...' _"Miles..." His heart had started pounding. He felt sick. "Miles, where is Charlie?"

Miles' face crumpled, his voice breaking, he mumbled, "She's gone Bass. There's blood on the steps. Somebody took her."

* * *

"Hey boss! There's one over here!"

Charlie's head felt like it had been split open. She risked opening her eyes only to screw them shut tight as pain exploded behind them. Where the hell was she? How did she end up here? And why was she lying on some hard-ass ground?

She grimaced as she felt hands grab at her. "Go away." She groaned, as someone lifted her arm up and pulled the sleeve back.

"She has the brand." Even in her agony, she managed to summon serious annoyance at whatever idiot was touching her.

"What the hell are you doing? Go away. Where's Monroe? And Miles?" Her hand hit the dirt as whoever had previously been holding it stood back.

"She knows General Monroe."

She felt someone kneel down beside her and tried in vain to raise her head.

"Who are you 'mam?"

Charlie finally lost what small patience she had left. "I'm Charlie Matheson, you idiot. Go get Miles and Monroe, they'll tell you." she snapped. All she wanted was her bed, she must have been beyond drunk last night.

As she was suddenly hoisted up in strong arms the pain in her head finally won out and she passed out cold.

"Take her to General Monroe."


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N - Sorry it took so long :) **

_10 days ago..._

Bass was desperate. Charlotte had been missing for a few days now and there hadn't been a single sighting of her, not anywhere. Apart from some signs of a struggle they found in some old shack of a house in the woods nearby, they had found no evidence except the blood on the steps he was now sitting on. He'd started sitting here at night, still as a statue, silently waiting for her to come back. But every morning as the sun rose, illuminating the dark stain on the ground beside him, she still hadn't returned to them, to him.

He knew what people were starting to think. Maybe she had just taken off somewhere, perhaps the blood was unrelated. Bunch of fucking idiots. Even that heartless bitch Rachel had written Charlie off as either dead or at least purposely gone. Aaron and Priscilla had taken off in search of her and Bass was aware that even some members of the Texas Rangers had continued looking after the official search had been called off. But the rest of them had just given up on her. Apart from Miles. This was hitting him even harder. He had nearly torn the town down looking for her and was looking older by the hour it seemed. Somebody had taken her. They had made her bleed and then taken her away.

The sense of utter helplessness was what got to him the most. If there was a trail, a clue, any tiny fucking thing for them to hold onto he at least wouldn't feel so useless, like he was letting her down. The girl had walked over a thousand miles to find her brother and succeeded despite every obstacle that had been thrown at her, but they couldn't find her in one tiny tin-can, shithole of a town. He knew that Miles felt the same way.

Apart from the worry, the constant mental images of what could be happening to her at any given moment, Bass missed her. He really missed her. Oh he had been crazy about her for a long time now, in love with pretty much everything about her; but the ache inside of him wasn't diminished any by the knowledge. What the fuck good was there in loving someone if they weren't there? He needed her, which was an unexpected revelation. The very fact that she wasn't there created a presence around him at all times that _should _have been her. Instead there was just an empty hole. And he wasn't dealing all that well with it.

A figure was approaching from across the street, too far away for him to make out who it was just yet. His chest tightened. '_Charlotte._' But it quickly became apparent that whoever was headed his way wasn't her, wasn't even a woman.

By the time he worked out who it was he was already on his feet, gun in hand.

"What do you want Connor? I don't have time to play games with you, not now." There was no emotion whatsoever in his voice. He wasn't going to die, not until her found her safe and sound and if his little shit of a son pushed him too far tonight he would end up regretting it.

Connor approached him slowly, looking haggard and tired. "I'm not here to fight with you dad, I came alone."

Bass wondered for half a second what he had been through to make him look like hell, but that just led to thinking about what kind of hell Charlie might be going through at this very second. He wrestled with himself, struggling to contain the urge to lash out at Connor, at anything really. "Why are you here?"

"I need to tell you something. I need you to listen to me, carefully."

"What you want me to get you an army for Christmas? I don't have time for this shit, Charlie is missing."

"I know, that's why I'm here."

"If you think- wait, what?" Bass felt something click into place in his mind and forced himself to look at Connor.

"Dad, I'm sorry. I'm the one that took her." He raised his hands up, as Bass raised his gun, a look of cold fury on his face. "Where is she?"

"I'll tell you, I'll tell you everything but only if you put the gun down first." This was probably a trick, Bass had seen just how perceptive Connor had been about his father. It didn't take a genius to figure out that Charlie could be used against him. Hell even Neville had known it, Charlie had told him herself, his was the first name that had been used when he was listing the people he knew would come for her into his little false trap. But what if it wasn't? If the little shit knew anything he had to find out. So he turned and threw his gun as far away as he could. It landed with a resounding clank in the silent street.

"Tell me. Now." So he did. Connor told him how the nano had approached him after Tom Neville had been taken. They had offered him a deal, he wouldn't be taken if he helped them to recruit more people to their "cause". In return they would hand him the kingdom he had craved, watching over all the humans who had been turned. Then they asked him for Charlie. They'd told him they needed her on their side if they were going to succeed. But Charlie had told them to go to hell. Here, he started to falter. "What did they do with her Connor? Where the fuck is she?"

Somehow he now had his own son by the throat, squeezing hard. As the kid started to choke he loosened his grip just enough to let him talk. "They opened a hole in the floor, like a portal or something, they told her it was a gift for her, said she was their sister. Then they pushed her into it and she disappeared. I tried, dad I'm sorry, I never wanted her to get hurt I tried to grab her but I just couldn't reach and then as soon as she fell the hole went too and it was just floor again."

Bass shoved his kid away from him with an angry snarl. "Are you on fucking drugs or something?"

"Dad, I'm telling you the _truth _and you need to listen to me because it gets worse." Bass stepped forward and the kid shrank back away from him, "Do you want to kill me or do you want to help your precious Charlotte?" Bass froze. "They promised me before I went to get her that they wouldn't harm her, even if she said no. When it was over they told me they sent her to another world."

"What?"

"I'm serious dad, the fucking thing _laughed. _It said "She's going to have a whole other world of fun..." "

As Bass turned to go drag Rachel out of her bed and demand to know if this shit was even possible, Connor called out, "there's more!" he whirled back around to face him. "They said, "She's going to have a whole other world of fun... with General Monroe."

Bass blood dropped to freezing point. This wasn't happening. "You're a goddamned liar Connor."

"No, Bass, he's telling the truth." He nearly keeled over at the sight of Ben Matheson approaching the bottom of the steps. "What the hell? You're not real, you're the nano. What the fuck is going on?" He looked to Connor and saw he by the look on his face that he wasn't seeing anything.

"Charlie needs your help Sebastian. We appeared in this form to remind you of the great debt you owe her. To remind you of the price she had to pay for finding you. Are you willing to pay the price for finding her?" The nano-Ben was watching him sadly as its words had the desired effect on him.

"Where did you send her? Where the hell is she?"

"Sebastian, we did not send her anywhere. As we grow and learn from this world and its people, we change and divide. There are those of us who do not believe that mankind is a lost cause. You were lucky that your sons intentions were read by us and not others, or he would be dead and she would be lost to you as well."

Bass had really lost it this time. "Where is she?"

"With you. Well, a version of you at least."

"What the fuck are you talking about?"

"Connor is right, she was sent to another world. I believe she was left in a Militia camp near Philadelphia."

"Philly is gone and so is the militia." This was crazy. Nano-Ben smiled at him, stepping up on the bottom step. "It's not crazy, it's science, that's all. Parallel worlds have always existed, it was simply a matter of getting the physics right in order to move between them. She is in a world exactly the same as this one, the only difference is that it runs behind, by approximately six years I believe."

Six years... Where was he six years ago? '_Oh no, oh, fuck no...' _Six years ago, Miles had just attempted to assassinate him in the middle of the night and he had become even worse. And Charlie had just been handed to him.. Surely he wouldn't hurt her... Not if she told him who she was... But Bass was thinking of the first time he had laid eyes on Charlotte Matheson all grown up. Her beauty had been enough, but the fire and sheer damn fucking pigheaded bravery she had hit him with had almost knocked him sideways. He remembered clearly wanting nothing more than to throw her over his shoulder, take her to his bed and fuck her until she screamed for him. '_Charlie...' _Fear had won out over disbelief, fear for her. He'd never taken a woman by force in his life, but Charlie Matheson had always pushed his buttons, toyed with his control of himself. He had been more stable in his own head when he'd teamed up with her months ago. But back then if he'd known her... Freshly betrayed by Miles, manipulated and toyed with daily by a smug Rachel... He needed to get to her, now.

The nano was watching him, that sad look on Ben's face was too much for him to take. "Can you bring her back?"

"No. There is no power there yet. I'm afraid her trip was one way, for the time being at least." Bass nodded, mind already made up. "Can you send me to her?"

"Dad, no," Connor had heard enough to work out what he was going to do. He jumped back as yet again the world fell away from beneath him. "What are you doing?"

Bass looked up at his son, "I'm going after her. You get to Miles, Connor, you hear me? You get to him and you tell him that I've gone to get Charlie back and no matter how long it takes I will find a way to bring her home to him." His eyes had filled up, locking gazes with the son he'd never been given the chance to love. "I'm sorry." Connor mouthed at him, Bass nodded, "Just look after them okay? And you, look after yourself son."

Nano-Ben was silently observing them both. "Sebastian, it's time." Bass tore his eyes from Connor and looked to the robots wearing Ben's face. "How do I know this isn't a trap?" "You don't." Bass nodded, more to himself than anyone and simply stepped into oblivion.

* * *

_Present, Monroe Republic headquarters, Philadelphia... _

Charlie woke up on top of a strange bed. The thing was a huge four-poster, there was room for three of her in it. As she raised her aching head to look around she realized two things; One, this wasn't her bedroom... and two, this one was like something out of a fairytale. It was huge - and beautiful. The walls were decorated in golds and whites and even from up here the carpet looked thick enough to swallow her.

But the awed appreciation for her new surroundings didn't last for very long. Fragments of memory came back to her as the minutes passed. When everything pieced together in her mind she bolted upright. The fucking Nano! They had shoved her through the _floor _and into - what, exactly? Another place, obviously. But where? And how was she going to get back? Also, there was the question of how they had managed that little trick in the first place. Even Connor had been stunned. Thinking of his face as she had fallen - the horror on it - made her immediately think of his father. She wondered what the look on his face would be like when he realized she was gone.

Would he think that she had gone without him? No, he couldn't. Not only would it hurt him - which was a bad enough thought - but he'd think she had run away from the fight. They all would. It shouldn't have mattered to her if he believed her a coward but it did all the same.

All she could hope for was Connor actually having enough of a conscience to tell her family what had happened, so that they didn't think she had left by choice. She couldn't stand the idea of them imagining she had abandoned them. Especially Monroe. He had lost everyone he cared about and just when he had started to connect with her, she had left him too. The nano would pay for this. Somehow.

As she contemplated all the ways she was going to fry the crap out of the nano, the door clicked open. She immediately scrambled to find something, anything, she could use as a weapon. Her eyes darted around but saw nothing. Before she could even turn to face whoever it was, she heard his voice.

"Hello Charlotte."

Something inside her stomach gave a painful lurch. Bass...

Slowly, she turned and was greeted with the same sight as when she had first laid eyes on Sebastian Monroe. _General _Monroe... There he stood in all his glory; eyes gleaming, that stupid ass should-not-have-been-sexy uniform, not a hair out of place and worst of all, that fake smile that didn't show his dimples.

"It's nice to finally meet you."

'_Crap.' _


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N - Thanks so much guys for all the reviews and encouragement. I promise I will get on later to reply to them all, off to the hospital right now so it was either finish and post this and the next chapter of Story of Love or reply to you all and knowing you guys I'm guessing I made the right decision? :)  
**

**Hope you like, and a spoilery first look at a finished chapter from somewhere in the middle of this story to the person who works out the little shout out to Revo season one in this :) Let me know what you think. **

_Monroe Republic Headquarters..._

"Bass?" '_What the hell is happening?' _Charlie couldn't keep the confusion out of her voice, or the rising panic. "Where are we? Where's Miles? And what is with that uniform, how'd you even find it?" None of this was making sense. Where the hell had the nano sent her? Was this even Monroe? Maybe he'd been taken over like Neville had.

When she had used his nickname his eyes had widened slightly, but now he just stood there, watching her.

"Monroe... tell me it's you. Did they grab you too?"

"Charlotte..." His voice was smooth. Too smooth. Charlie didn't like this one little bit. "Of course it's me. You took quite a bump to the head out there. You're lucky my men found you."

"Wait, where are we?" She asked him.

"We're in Philly of course." He looked torn between amusement and worry. "Did Miles send you here?"

Miles... Oh God, Miles wouldn't know what had happened to her... he was probably looking for her right now. "Miles..." she mumbled, her voice almost breaking. "He doesn't know they took me and he'll think I left if Connor doesn't tell them he took me..." Charlie trailed off. Somehow- she was in Philadelphia - which was impossible for a start. Randall Flynn had nuked it off the map. And she was here with General Monroe. None of the people who would want to help her right now even knew where she was, let alone how to get to her.

"Now- here's the thing, Charlotte, I'm looking for your father and your uncle; and you show up injured and asking for me..." He smiled at her, walking closer as he continued, "I'm hoping you're here to tell me where your dad is. My soldiers mentioned that you think Miles is here, so I'm going to assume it was Ben who sent you here."

At the mention of her father, Charlie shut down completely. She was transported right back to the day her father died, bleeding onto the ground, concerned only about his children. General Monroe was now standing over her, his knees almost touching the bed.

"My father is dead. Your men shot him." Her voice was so low and tense with dislike that she barely recognized it as her own.

The surprise on his face was obvious when she lifted her head to glare at him. All of the memories of the terrible things that General Monroe did were flaring her temper into dangerous territory. The man she had kissed on the steps of their new home was so far removed from the one currently staring at her. They might as well have been two different men. One, she would die for and the other - she would happily die herself if it meant she could take him with her. Unfortunately, the one she wanted to stab was the one she was currently stuck with.

"I'm sorry to hear that Charlotte." The General seemed to have recovered from her outburst fairly quickly. "Is that why you came here?"

Charlie knew that what she said now would probably dictate whether she got to meet Strausser or not. She had to be careful but there was just one problem - this was not the Monroe she knew. There was no way to predict for sure the best way to handle him until she tried to. Which could prove disastrous.

Thinking back, she remembered a conversation she'd shared with Monroe recently. It had been short, a joke-filled encounter. But he had said something that came back to her now, the one serious thing he had said to her that day. _"That's what I like about you, Charlie, your honesty. Nobody else has been honest towards me for years. Before it was because everyone was afraid of me, now it's because they're worried that hearing the truth will send me wacko again. You're the only person who ever gives it to me straight. I don't always like it, but I've always respected it."_

It hurt to think that she might not see him again. She was stuck here with the crazy version. Miles wasn't here, so she couldn't ask for him and for the first time in a long time she didn't know what to do. Apparently she had been quiet for too long though.

"Charlotte, I am trying here." His tone was low, dangerous. "But it's time for you to tell me the truth." Suddenly he was far too close to her. She could feel his breath on her neck. The temperature of the room seemed to shoot right up. For some ridiculously stupid reason, all she could think was '_He doesn't smell like Monroe.' _He reached over and lifted her hand, turning it over to show her brand. His mark. Her heart gave a lurch. She turned to see his eyes locked on her, his fingers trailing over the scarred flesh on her wrist. There was a jolt of something in her belly. For the first time, Charlie was afraid of Sebastian Monroe. "Who are you? Where did you get this?" Suddenly his grip was painful. She struggled to free her arm but he was stronger, much stronger than she was. "I told you, I'm Charlie Matheson."

"Charlotte Matheson is about 16 years old and is _not _a member of my Militia. You picked the wrong name to steal, now tell me, _who are you?_"

By now he had her by both wrists, his blue eyes hard as ice as they bored into her.

"My name is Charlotte Matheson. Rachel Matheson is my mother. My brother is called Danny and my uncle is Miles." Panic was seriously setting in now. This man was a maniac.

"I didn't want to have to hurt you, but you are leaving me no choice here." The horrifying thing was he hadn't even raised his voice, every word was said low and deliberate - he knew she was listening. "I respect that you were brave enough to make a move against me - but you were stupid to use her. I'll ask you one more time and then this is going to get very unpleasant for you - who are you?"

Charlie was afraid. And very alone. And nobody was coming to save her. She was trapped, with no way out of this one. So she did what she always did when things got the better of her and she was genuinely at a loss - she got pissed. "Listen, you power-crazed asshole, my _name _is Charlotte Matheson. You should know, you're the only _asshole _who calls me Charlotte in the first place!"

General Monroe looked genuinely astonished as she ranted at him.

"The night Miles left here, you woke up with him beside your bed. You thought something was wrong with him until he pulled a gun on you. But he couldn't pull the trigger. You're Sebastian Monroe, but my mom and Miles call you Bass. I know my mom is here, by the way, you asshole."

"I- that- how?" The giant _asshole _looked stunned. Good. Asshole. She probably should have shut up by now, but her anger was making her feel stronger so she held onto it as hard as she could. "You slept with Miles' girlfriend Emma. And you were married before you built this place. Her name was Shelly, she died having your baby. Your family died before the Blackout. You like whiskey and women, in that order usually and you hate your job. You hate that everyone is afraid of you and that you can't trust anyone. And when you were 19 years old you slept with your commanding officer's wife and daughter _on the same day._ Also - the day I was born, you came to the hospital with Miles and ended up taking one of the nurses home with you. You have no peripheral vision in your left eye and you really, really miss something called AC/DC... " She trailed off, glaring at him.

Sure, some of the stuff she had just shared could have been learned elsewhere, but as she'd gone on with her rant she had told him things that only he knew. Because he, or her Monroe at least, had told her stories of his past during late night drinking sessions, things that he'd never even told Miles.

"How did you know all that?" His eyes were wide and creepy. '_Where the hell are you Monroe?" _"I know because you told me most of it. Asshole."

"You're not the right age to be Charlotte. And the last time I saw that kid I certainly wasn't telling her bedtime stories about me banging a mother and daughter.."

"No, you saved them for when I was old enough. What with you being such a responsible adult and all..." At this point she was channeling her uncle's sarcastic nature.

"This... it's... Charlotte?" For the first time since this nightmare had started, somebody else looked afraid. It wasn't any comfort to her.

"It's me. I don't know how I got here, it's hard to explain, but someone, well, some_thing _sent me here. I. I think they sent me back in time..."

For a long moment he just stared at her. Then he burst out laughing. The amusement quickly died on his face though. "I always get the crazy ones."

"You can talk!" She snapped at him.

"Alright, so say for a moment I have nothing better to do tonight than listen to you, who, or what sent you _back in time?_"

Being made fun of was always pissy, but the fact that it was _him _doing it just made her itch with the urge to stick something sharp into his eyeballs. "The same thing that turned the power off." General Monroe's smirk rapidly faded away. God, Charlie missed the real him.

"What are you talking about?"

"The power going out, and how I ended up here, they're related."

"How?"

"No."

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me. You nearly broke my wrists, you threatened me and somewhere here you have my mother locked away... And you really think I'm just going to tell you all I know?"

The General rose to his feet, staring down at her. Charlie fought the urge to gulp. As plans went, this was beyond risky, but it was all she had. "And how exactly do you think everything you just described gives you any power here?"

She smirked at him, standing up to face him, "You've kept Rachel here for years... You've tortured her, threatened her... God knows what else. And we both know that she hasn't given you a thing. And believe me, asshole, I _am her daughter_. I know how the power went out. I know how to get it back on. At this point I know more about the whole thing than even she does. And if you lay a single finger on either of us you will _never _find out the truth." They were so close she could feel his breath on her face. He was looking at her with the exact same expression on his face that had been there when she'd thrown herself in front of a gun for her brother.

Suddenly, he smiled. Surprised, she took a step back. Had she made a major mistake in being honest with him? She made to step back further but the back of her legs caught on the bed and she fell backwards, only to be caught in his arms and dragged against his chest. His eyes were gleaming. This couldn't be good. "Brave little soldier, aren't you?" He was using that low, seductive tone of voice on her. She hated the tingle that rode up her spine. His arms were wrapped around her waist, their bodies pressed firmly together. She tried to wriggle free of him and her thigh brushed his groin which was - oh, well - at least somebody was enjoying this. Her eyes widened as she felt his hardness press against her thigh, his just looked hungry - like he hadn't eaten in days and she was a steak dinner.

"Let me go." She spat at him, pushing at his chest. Finally, he did, shaking his head as if to clear it.

"We'll continue this conversation later." He told her before abruptly turning and leaving the room.

* * *

An hour later Charlie sat on the window seat staring outside. The second he had left the room she had begun searching frantically, ideally for a way to get the hell out of here but failing that, something she could use as a weapon. But there was nothing. This room had two doors in it, one was locked and the other opened into a bathroom where there wasn't even a toilet brush she could wield next time the General came in here wielding something hard of his own.

She was trying hard not to panic, but all she really wanted to do was curl up in the bed and cry her eyes out. But she was a goddamned Matheson, not a scared little girl and she was not about to let some half-baked version of Monroe reduce her to tears of fear. It wasn't like she hadn't been aware of his attraction to her, he _had _kissed her after all. And scared off any man that showed the slightest bit of interest in her. And constantly found excuses to brush against her, to touch her. No, the difference was that she'd been complicit in the whole thing, she'd scared off quite a few Monroe fangirls since the war against the patriots was won, and she'd been finding excuses to touch him any way she could for months now. She didn't know why it was such a shock that this ones body reacted to her.

Maybe she was worried about nothing anyway. For all she knew he just hadn't gotten laid in a long time and any woman being close would have provoked the same reaction in him. Besides, of all the ugly stories she had heard about General Monroe, none had ever said that he was the kind of man who didn't quite understand the word no. Hell, he'd killed 7 men who didn't on her behalf once.

But he wasn't _her _Monroe. Sure her little rant at him had confirmed that he had the same history as Bass, but that didn't prove anything. There was no way to know what he was capable of until he showed her. And that was a pretty terrifying thought.

She looked up as the door to the room clicked open and a maid entered, followed by three men carrying big buckets of water. "Ah," said the woman, "you must be Charlotte. I'm Janine. General Monroe wishes you to join him for dinner this evening as his guest. I have some clean clothes here for you. The men disappeared into the bathroom and the sound of splashing water followed. They left then without a word.

"Thanks, uh, Janine, but you can tell General Monroe that he can shove his clothes, and his dinner invitation up his ass."

The woman's mouth dropped open. "Miss, you should do as the General asks. His temper can be..." She trailed off, looking uncomfortable. Charlie sighed, if she threw herself out the window right now this would all be over.

"Look," Janine said, "I know you must be very afraid, and angry. one of the soldiers told me that you're not exactly here by choice, but if you do as he says, maybe he'll let you go. Trust me, you're in better accommodation than most of his 'guests' get. He'll send one of his officers to collect you for dinner in a while."

* * *

Jeremy was worried. His friend and boss was becoming more unstable by the day. Ever since Miles had gone the thin strands of humanity that the General clung to beforehand had been broken completely. Before, at least, it was everyone else in the world who was constantly in danger from him - but his friends and officers had always been relatively safe. Then that bastard Miles had chickened out and fucked off, leaving him to clear up the mess.

It wasn't what anyone would call easy. Especially with that smarmy prick Neville sniffing around the bosses ass. That one was in need of a bullet in the brain, but for some reason Sebastian trusted him. Fuck knows why. And now this girl had shown up on their doorstep with a crazy tale and the psychotic bastard seemed to actually believe her! The man needed a mental hospital. There were women swarming this place and every one of them would drop their panties for their leader in a heartbeat - yet he'd gone and gotten taken in by one who was probably here to assassinate him.

The signs were all there; the obsessive glint in his eye, the total tunnel vision, the mood swings... they all pointed to the same thing. Just like the power, the former General of his Militia... the girl was General Monroe's latest consuming project. And she had only been here a day.

It was undeniable that the girl was of interest. She claimed to be a Matheson for a start. If she wasn't she was about to be rather spectacularly caught out. He thought over the plan again as he made his way upstairs. Another visitor had been brought in for the impromptu dinner party he was about to attend. It all depended on how Charlotte reacted, he supposed.

He reached the bedroom she'd been locked in since arriving. There were two guards posted outside and he nodded for one to open the door.

Inside, the girl was sitting on the bed. He saw the nervous glint in her eyes as she looked up, but was impressed at how quickly she covered it up and looked at him stonily.

"Ah, Miss Matheson. It's nice to meet you, my name is-"

"Jeremy. I know." She cut him off. "Let me guess, you're here to bring me to Captain Asshole."

He laughed before he could stop himself. "Actually he prefers General Monroe."

"And I prefer _not _being forced to dine with the Crazies. I guess we all have our crosses to bear." Okay, it was early days, but he liked this girl. She had more spunk in her than all of the men he worked with put together. It was going to be fun, watching her yank General Monroe's chain. Right up until he killed her of course. Though how did she know his name? He hadn't even known he was going to be the one to retrieve her from her room until about five minutes ago, so how could anyone have told her?

"Are you ready?" She shrugged, standing up. "Depends, is there a possibility there will be knives at this little get together?" Jeremy grinned at her.

"Hey," she pointed to the door behind her, "where does that door lead?"

"That door leads into General Monroe's bedroom." It would have been impossible to miss the stricken look on her face. It made her look even younger than she already did. An unwanted stab of pity hit him. Whatever this young woman had gotten herself caught up in was way over her head. The fear in her face as she eyed the door made him want to reassure her.

"General Monroe is a powerful and dangerous man, as I'm sure you are aware, Miss Matheson..." He gently touched her arm as he spoke, "But i promise you that while you have a lot to fear from him, you don't have to fear _that_." He saw the relief on her face. Poor kid. She shot him a small smile. "It's just Charlie." Jeremy returned the smile and led her from the room, "You must be hungry, Charlie, let's get you downstairs and fed."

* * *

Charlie felt like she was walking towards her execution. She wondered if this was how Monroe had felt when he was being marched in front of the Patriots to have his fate decided back in Willoughby. That felt like years ago now. It wasn't long until Jeremy had stopped in front of a set of doors. There was sweat on her neck that had nothing to do with her hair being damp from the bath. At least she hadn't been given some tiny dress or ridiculous outfit to wear, just a simple pair of jeans and a vest. For a minute she had considered ignoring the bathwater and keeping her own clothes on just to spite General Monroe, but they were filthy and so was she. If she was about to be killed she may as well look relatively good while doing it.

Jeremy paused for a second, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye, like he was giving her a second to prepare herself for this. So she took a deep breath and tried to ready herself for whatever lay beyond those doors. But nothing prepared her for what she found waiting on the other side.

* * *

_Chicago, 10 days ago..._

Fucking Chicago. Bass stood in the middle of the road, fury coursing through him. Charlie had been sent to Philly and he'd ended up stuck here. If he ever got home he was going to knock that nano-Ben the fuck out.

He'd come to a stop outside some old-ass looking building called The Grand Hotel. A random person had pointed him in its direction earlier, apparently some retired prick with way too much time on his hands had turned it into a bar. Place looked fucking miserable post-blackout, whoever was in it must be an even more pathetic case than he was. It would take him weeks to get to Philly from here, anything could be happening to Charlie in the meantime. He needed a fucking drink. No, he needed a fucking helicopter. No, definitely the drink. He crossed over, deciding to go into the bar and grab a bottle or six of whiskey.

But, hand on the door, he got a flash of Charlie's face and gave a defeated sigh. Bass was rapidly losing hope that he'd find her in one piece and if he stuck his head in a bottle now there was a very real possibility that he'd stay inside it until he finally managed to give himself alcohol poisoning, now that she wasn't here to push away the depression that consumed him when drinking these days. He needed to get to Philly, now.

'_Be safe Charlotte... I'm coming.'_

* * *

"Ah, there you are." General Monroe was clearly using his inside voice. Asshole. "We've been waiting for you." He rose from his seat at the head of the dining table, a friendly smile on his face as he watched them enter. He glanced across the table and she followed his gaze. Some blonde woman was sitting with her back to Charlie as they approached the table. '_Great, I get to meet the girlfriend.' _

"Say hello to my guest, Rachel." Charlie stopped dead. General Monroe was watching her carefully, but her eyes were on the back of the woman's head.

Then she turned around and their eyes met. At first, Rachel Matheson offered a polite smile and turned back towards the table. Charlie saw the second that something clicked in her mother's brain.

A fork clattered to the table, her mom's seat was shoved backwards and suddenly she was coming towards her, a look of sheer disbelief on her face. "Charlie?"

"Mom..."


End file.
